Package with immobilizing filler



Nov. 28, 1961 C. E. SUNDSTROM PACKAGE WITH IMMOBILIZING FILLER FiledJune 7, 1957 Uited States Patent 3,010,570 PACKAGE WKTH MMOBILIZINGFILLER Clemens E. Sundstrom, 1145 Grizzly Peak Blvd, Berkeley, Calif.Filed June 7, 1957, Ser. No. 664,312 Claims. (Cl. 20642) This inventionrelates to packaging tablets and the like in rigid or semi-rigidreceptacles, such as bottles, jars or boxes made of glass, plastic,metal or paperboard, so as to immobilize the tablets therein to preventexcessive shifting or rattling thereof and the consequent abrasion orfragmentation of the contents. Although particularly intended forpackaging tablets, i.e., small concreted objects of any kind or shape,which are more or less friable or frangible, the invention may beapplied to the packaging of other small objects, especially capsules andmedicinals.

It is known to immobilize tablets in bottles by inserting a resilientpacking, such as cotton wadding or a sponge, between the tablets and thelid when such bottles are first filled at a factory or dispensary; it isfurther known to attach such packing to the lid for facile removal fromthe bottle. Such known packing was, however, intended only to fill therelatively small empty space which exists after the bottle was initiallyfilled for the purpose of avoiding damage to the contents duringshipment and was neither intended nor adapted for immobilizing thetablets which remained within the bottle after significant depletionthereof, inasmuch as the packing was not sufficiently compressible.'Thus, if suflicient packing were used to occupy the whole or thegreater part of the space within the bottle for immobilizing a smallfraction of the tablets after significant depletion, it could not becompressed into the relatively small ullage space initially present atthe top of the bottle .without the application of a crushing pressure onthe tablets; such as pressure would, moreover, make it difiicult toapply the lid. It was, moreover, inconvenient to insert such packinginto the bottle because the packing had an irregular or undefined shapeor because it was stringshaped and long. Also, spillage was apt to occurupon withdrawal of such packing from the bottle, particularly whentablets were small in relation to the cross section of the bottle,because the tablets adhered readily to the fuzzy or irregular sides ofthe filler and because such tablets often became lodged at the side ofthe packing.

On the other hand, it is also known to employ springs, such as coiledmetallic springs, that exert a resilient, expansive force between thelid and a plunger or fiat plate which engages the tablets at variouslevels in accordance with the degree of fullness of the bottle.Drawbacks of such devices are their high cost in relation to the cost ofthe bottle and lid, and the fact that such springs are resilient,whereby the force exerted against the tabletsand the lidis porportionalto the contents, resulting in a many-fold variation in the force. This,again, often leads to excessive pressure when the bottle is full if thespring is of sufficient stiif ness to exert an el'lective immobilizingforce when the contents are materially reduced. Further, such devicesare awkward to insert into the bottle, being apt to become bent out ofshape as well to jump away when inexpertly handled.

It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide an improvedpackage for tablets and the like which is economical, which willellectively immobilize the tablets Without excessive pressure thereonboth when the receptacle is substantially full and when it is materiallydepleted of tablets, and which can be conveniently inserted into andwithdrawn from the receptacle even when it has a narrow mouth. A furtherobject is to provide a package for tablets and the like containing animmobilizing filler which is effective both when the receptacle containslarge tablets and when it contains tablets which are so small that eachcovers only a minor fraction of the cross sectional area of thereceptacle, whereby the tablets collectively present an irregular uppersurface; and to obviate the annoyance of spilling tablets due toadherence to the immobilizing filler, especially at the sides thereof,when the filler is withrawn.

In summary, according to the invention the tablets or other smallobjects are packaged in a rigid or semi-rigid container of any desiredconfiguration and construction material and are immobilized therein by afiller consisting of one or of several pieces of a material which ishighly compressible by a force which, up to a characteristic bottomingpoint, does not increase proportionally with the extent of compressionbut which, nevertheless, has good restitution characteristics asdescribed hereinafter, particularly polyurethane foam. It is preferredto use a filler having a length, when unstressed, at least as great 'asthe major part of the depth of the container, advantageously equal tothe full depth to immobilize even the last tablet.

The invention is particularly advantageous when the receptacle has anappreciable depth, e.g., greater than one inch, wherein the specialcompressibility characteristics are specially utilized. The invention isherein described as applied to a vial, i.e., a relatively deep, tubularcontainer of narrow cross section, but is, of course, not so limited.The filler is preferably formed with regular sides, e.g., of constantcross section equal to the size of the mouth or neck of the containerwhen it is a bottle or vial; in the latter case the filler may have asize to fill substantially the total volume within the otherwise emptyvial when placed therein beneath the lid.

The invention will be described further by reference to the accompanyingdrawing forming a part of this specification and showing two embodimentsby way of example, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is an elevation view of a transparent vial containing largetablets and a filler according to the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a transverse section, taken on the line 2-2 of FIGURE 1;

h FIGURE 3 is a longitudinal section of the filler and FIGURE 4 is anelevation showing the vial and filler applied to packaging smalltablets; and

FIGURE 5 is a longitudinal section through a partly opened packageshowing a modified construction.

Referring to FIGURES 1-3, the package includes a glass or plastic vial10 which is closed by a cap or lid 11 secured in any manner, forexample, provided with a peripheral skirt 12 having frictionalengagement with the outside of the vial. Attached to the underside ofthe lid, e.g., by an adhesive, is a filler plug 13' having av crosssectional shape that corresponds to that of the vial and is almost aslarge, and a length, when unstressed, substantially equal to the insidevertical dimension of the vial. Because of such a length the plug willengage the lowermost tablet 14 at the bottom when only that tablet iscontained within the vial.

The filler plug 13 is made of high compacti ble material, preferablypolyurethane foam, or a material having similar compressibility andrestitution characteristics. Such a material has a compressibility curvewhich exhibits a characteristic bottoming effect. In other Words, it canbe compressed into a small fraction of its normal volume by theapplication of a force which, instead of increasing proportionally withcompression as in the case of elastic compression, rises only verylittle until a certain limit is reached, after which a sharply increasedforce is required to elfect further compression. Yet this material hasgood restitution characteristics and expands readily to its normal shapeand volume, although the expansion is gradual or delayed and not asrapid as in the case of elastic restitution. It therefore differs fromfoam rubber and related materials. A material of such desiredcompressibility and restitution characteristics is herein, for brevity,designated as one which is highly compactible with a compressibilitycurve exhibiting a bottoming elfect and which has a gradual restitution;

Because of such characteristics the filler plug 13 is able to exert aneffective immobilizing force on the lower- 7 most tablet 14 when'italone is beneath the plug without exerting an excessive force againstthe lid and tablets when the vial is filled substantially to the top. InFIG- URE 1 the vial is shown about one-third full, with the plug 13partly compressed and bearing against the uppermost tablet 15.

. The plug, being formed of a single piece of cohesive material andhaving a regular external shape or outline, is easily inserted into thevial by hand, without the inconvencience of compacting it laterally toforce it into the opening or mouth of the receptacle, which is slightlywider than the plug. Also, the plug can be easily retracted from thevial by simply removing the lid, to which it is attached; however, sincethe plug exerts only a low expansive force it will not tend to pop thelid open. Further, the particular compressibility characteristics of theplug make it unlikely that the plug will escape from the users grasp byresilient expansion. It should be noted, however, that the invention isnot restricted to the use of plugs of one piece or that are secured tothe lid.

In the preferred construction the plug, or at least the bottom thereof,extends over substantially the full area of the vial, thereby applyingan even pressure on the uppermost tablet present. Further, by shapingthe plug substantially to the contour of the vial throughout the lengththereof the plug is better able to apply the immobilizing force, beingsupported laterally so as to overcome the tendency toward bucklingjwhichwould be encountered with a narrow column. k

The configuration of the plug considered above is of especial utilitywhen the vial contains small tablets 16, asshown in FIGURE 4. It isevident that such a mass of tablets presents a highly irregular uppersurface, to which the compactible plug conforms readily to apply animmobilizing force against each without crushing the highest tablets.Also, because of the extended area of the bottom of the plug all of thetablets exposed at the top of the mass are engaged, thereby preventingany from becoming wedged at the sides thereof; this avoids the danger ofaccidental spillage when the plug is withdrawn because tablets are notdragged up vw'th the plug.

FIGURE 5 shows a modified construction wherein the vial is provided witha cap 17 which has a peripheral skirt 18 shaped to enter the vial forinternal frictional engagement therewith. In this embodiment the plug 13may be secured by mere frictional engagement with the interior,cylindrical face of the skirt. It operates in the manner previouslydescribed to immobilize a variable number of tablets 19, therebypreventing any rattling or excessive movements thereof when the vial isbeing carried or handled.

It was found in practice that the force exerted by the plug according tothe invention is sufiiciently small to permit the lid or cap to besecured by friction.

Although the invention wasdescribed with reference to two preferredembodiments, both involving vials wherein the filler plugs had widthsand lengths to fill the vials when these are otherwise empty, it isevident that the invention is not restricted thereto but may be appliedto receptacles of other shapes and types and that plugs of other lengthsin relation to the depthsof the receptacles as well as of other widthsmay be used to realize all or some of the advantages considered above.

Finally, it is not an invariable requirement that the plug 13 be placedadjacent to the lid; it may, for example, be placed at the bottom of thecontainer.

I claim as my invention:

1. The combination of a substantially rigid container having a topopening for receiving objects such as tablets, a removable closure forsaid opening adapted to be secured to the container, and a filler plugof highly compactible material within the container for immobilizing aplurality of said objects to a variable depth within the container, saidmaterial being cohesive and having a compressibility curve exhibiting abottoming elfect and a gradual restitution such as polyurethane foam andthe length of said filler plug, when unstressed, being substantiallyequal to the full internal depth of the container.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said filler plug issituated above said objects.

3. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said material ispolyurethane foam. 2

4. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said container is a vialand said plug has a cross sectional shape corresponding to and occupyingsubstantially the entire cross section of the vial.

5. A package comprising an elongate vial having an open end, a closureremovably secured to said end of the vial, a plurality of objects suchas tablets within the vial, and a filling plug situated within the vialand compressed longitudinally between the said objects and said closure,said plug having, when extended, a length equal to substantially thefull length of the vial and a cross section which corresponds'totheshape of the vial and occupies the major part of the width of thevial, said plug being made of highly compact-ible material such aspolyurethane foam having a compressibility curve exhibiting a bottomingeifect and a gradual restitution.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS567,488 Moehm Sept. 8, 1896 2,091,212 McNeil Aug. 24, 1937 2,282,908Thompson May 12, 1942 2,780,350 Simon et al. Feb. 5, 1957 2,785,739McGregor et a1 Mar. 19, 1957 2,860,768 Smithers Nov. l8, 1958

